One piece of late breaking news we want ot pass on is that
another club is closing. Johnny D's in Somerville will call it quits
in January or February 2016. There's lots of stories there that will comming
out as the days go on I'm sure. This
is the Globe article. Our next order of business is the show that was
there this week.

As Gretchen was on stage at the Garden John Keegan was at Johnny
Ds for the Rezillos, Petty Morals and Casanovas in Heat.
Its so great that The Rezillos are still together and doing their thing
which John aptly pegs as B52s on punk

Blowfish was not at the Garden or Johnny Ds but at
the Middle East for a gig run by Illegally Blind. The draw was
a surf group from Boston called Beware the Dangers of a Ghost Scorpion.
A weird name but their Bandcamp
page showed a novel surf style worth investigating. After they set up
they exited the stage and a few minutes later made a dramatic entrance wearing
matching shirts and bandanas worn as a mask. They never spoke and never removed
the masks only lifting them to take a swig of beer every now and then.

Beware the Dangers of a Ghost Scorpion

Their name actually reflects this band's persona and the music which had a
sinister edge to it. They did surf that kept many of the conventions but with
added dimensions in songwriting and dynamics. The dynamics were aggressive and
that's not something you usually in surf. The volume was up and the dual guitars
sharp and sometimes noisy.
The songwriting took off from where the usual material ends.
They didnt trot out the 1-4-5 progression often and when they did they
made sure to dress it up with a convoluted turn arounds and extra sections.
They werent as melodic as the Insect
Surfers I saw just a while ago but they were in the same territory.
Another thing I loved about them was that the two guitars only had one pedal
each and I think they were just tuners. The sound was Fender guitars through
amps. I loved that sound and it was a tip to tradition.

The Heaters

The headliners Heaters were from Grand Rapids, Michigan
and what the Dangers of a Ghost Scorpion did for surf they did for San
Francisco psychedelic rock. Lots of groups are playing psych and Ive heard
a lot of them but no one nails the San Fran sound like these guys. I could feel
overtones of the Jefferson Airplane especially. This
song on Bandcamp gives an example of that. I was constantly reminded
of my Boston Tea Party days in 1968. There were lots of riffs that struck me
but no knock out songs. That might have been because the vocals were lost in
the mix. They, like many other current psych groups, slather on the echo. It
gives some atmosphere to the sound but dulls the overall effect  for me
anyway.

Friday and Saturday were filled with things to do. Friday had Upper Crust,
The Bristols and Last Stand at TTs, our faves The
Black Souls and Greg Allen's Fringe Religion were at Cantab,
The Dents, Dirty Truckers and Jay Allen were at Midway
and it was like that all over town! Saturday had the Foo Fighters/MOB/Bosstones
at Fenway. The
Bosstones did
a somewhat surprise show at TTs Blowout later that same night.
Friday night we knew we were going to interview David Minehan on Saturday
afternoon so we kept it low key and Sally OBrien's is where we
went. Richie Parsons was playing along with Asa Brebner.

Richie Parsons

Richies group this time was just four players. Without Brother Cleve
on keyboards the sound was bare and intimate which was perfect for the setting.
Tom Long on drums knew to keep things in miniature, his restrained playing
set the tone. Close up we could see more of what was going on with the guitars.
There were a few moving chord shapes with open strings that give these songs
their distinctive texture.
We've mentioned Frank Dehlers bass playing in this setting before
and with the subdued volume his playing was easy to actually hear and is pretty
amazing. In Evangeline he played some fill in riffs during the slow chord
sections that were gorgeous. They were melodic with a warm tone. Most other
times he would play long ascending/descending lines that lead you through the
songs. Great playing. Doug, on guitar, was following Franks ideas by playing
longer melodic solos rather than riff rocking. It really hit the spot tonight.

All that was to support the main things which are the songs
and Richies vocals. Richie was in good vocal shape and delivered on all
the lyrics. Most of these songs have a specific feel or mood. Blue Sands
was a stand out. If you were ever at the Blue Sands you know it's possible
for the place to inspire a song like this. He ended a my favorite from the CD;
Love Letters. The audience wanted an encore, and a specific one; they
were actually asking for the Axe song Summertime and thats how
the set ended.

Asa Brebner

Theres so much history, and music entwined with history, that Asa
Brebner carries with him. His between song banter is riddled with references
to local musicians and scene happenings. His creativity flows into his playing
and song writing and even his writings on-line. He writes some great pieces
on Facebook and sends out hilarious emails to promote his shows (you should
Try to get on that list) .
Tonight he starts with a Natalie Flanagan song. Its a good one.
Natalie showed up later. Asas solos are as sharp as his Strats tone.
We left early because of the Minehan interview but its with regret as
Asa is obviously just warming up.

David Minehan at Wooly Mammoth

On Saturday we went to Wooly Mammoth Studios to talk to David Minehan.
We had a great interview, it was a long one filled with loads of great stories.
David has lots to say. We talked about the Replacements, the studio,
and some of his personal life. Of course The Neighborhoods stories intertwined
with all those subjects. It will take a while to get that interview transcribed,
but stay tuned. We'll get it to you as fast as we can.

People have been asking about the Rat Beach Party this year. Michael
Weddle has posted a notice. He is working on it and it will be moved
to the C Note.
Michael Weddle says: "Although the negotiations
and details are still being worked out, we are looking toward October 9th to
October 11th for the Third Annual Rat Beach Party, to help build the Rat
Musicians Scholarship Fund. It'll be held at the C-Note at Nantasket
Beach (Hull, Mass.). I'm also hopeful to organize a Rat Luau Beach Party at
The Red Parrot, also on Nantasket Beach, for February (REMEMBER: The beach is
best when it's only you and a select group of friends at it -- great musical
video opportunities!). Stay tuned ... I'll be putting out a call for bands very
soon!"

July 22 (Wednesday)Jaz Coleman
founding member of Killing Joke is doing a Spoken Word performance at
The Middle East Down. its al about his new book: "Letters from Cythera".
Jaz will delve into his many experiences that have influenced his philosophical
outlook on life and also discuss, Supersynthesis, a principle which has facilitated
his many accomplishments including acting, conducting, singing, composing, geometry,
architecture, and occult history. Tix
available here. This one will be different, there's seating and VIP seating
tix for this show.

July 22 (Wednesday) up North in Portland
ME at The Space Gallery (538 Congress St, Portland, Maine 04101) are
Kid Congo Powers & the Pink Monkey Birds with Tiger Bomb and
Cheerwine Here's the FB
page for this one.

July 26 (Sunday) a Matinee Show at the
Middle East Up - 1PM doors with Band Without Hands, The Knock Ups,
Radio Compass, and Happy Little Clouds

July 26 (Sunday)Screeching Weasel,
plus The Queers and The Mr. T. Experience are at The Royale.
You can
get tix here. This is a 6PM show!!

July 26 (Sunday) Matinee show at The
Middle East Up with Band Without Hands, The Knock Ups, Radio Compass,
Happy Little Clouds. Doors are a 1PM

And after that we have.....

July 30 (Thursday) There's a mega hardcore
show at Cuisine en Locale with Power Trip, Foreseen, Boston Strangler,
Peacebreakers, Freedom, Fury, Red Death, Intent, CIAC and Take Control.
Music starts at 6:30 SHARP doors are at 6.

July 30 (Thursday)X, with all original
members, are at The Sinclair Tix
here

July 31 (Friday) THE DAMNED: Dont
You Wish That We Were Dead documentary is FINALLY playing in Boston!!
It's at the Regent Theater at 7:30. You can buy
tix here. Watch the
trailer here.

August 1 (Saturday)Tiger Bomb is on Crash Course for the Ravers on WMFO 91.5FM from
1-4PM

August 1 (Saturday)The Static Dynamic, The Wrong Shapes, Hope & the Husbands and Alchemilla
at The Middle east (FB
page for upcoming updates)

August 2 (Sunday)
A Punk Show at Koto with USA Waste (ex A Global Threat), Adults,
The Earbleeds, Gravel and Farce!

August 3 & 4(Monday
and Tuesday)Darkbuster
returns!! at The Sinclair. Well, no tix available anymore congrats
to Darkbuster for two night of sold out shows!!!c

August 3 (Monday)
Tsunami of Sound and The Vista Cruisers are at Opus Underground,
Salem.

August 6-8 (Thursday - Saturday)Boston
Fuzzstival 2015 is at The Middle East Down. The Fuzztival highlights
"the best bands in the region that make psychedelic/fuzz/garage/surf rock"
and its goal is "to build bridges within the local music community."
Stay tuned for the lineup and more info keep checking their FB
page!

August 8 (Saturday) - Head over to Store
54 to help Bob Colby celebrate his birthday (two days early) with
The Rationales and My Own Worst Enemy!

August 8 (Saturday) - The Bush Tetras
and headlining at The Sinclair and also on the bill are E, Gene Dante
& The Future Starlets and DJ Gang of One (Gang of Four's Hugo Burnham)
get tix here.

August 8 (Saturday)The Memphis Rockabilly
Band are doing an early show at Johnny D's (FB
page) 7-9PM

August 8 (Saturday) at The Spotlight
Tavern in Beverly The Charms, The Knock Ups, and Mary Lou Lord
(FB event page
)

August 9 (Sunday)The Billy Borgioli
Tribute Memorial Show at Cuisine en Locale. Doors are at 2:30 PM.
Oedipus will be DJ extraordinaire for the event. Also playing will be
Steve Cataldo and Rob Skeen doing an All Star Jam, Classic Ruins with
Pete Taylor on drums , GLiDER , Richie Parsons Band, Arthur Freedman
-film - live performance footage of Billy and Cheryl Eagan-Donovan film - interview
with Billy. For times and updating info as more bands are added
see the FB page

August 14 (Friday)
at The Midway are The Connection, The Above, Fireking & Special
guest to be announced...watch for updates on the FB
event page